Paul Lima cuts right through the crap in his Six Figure Freelancing blog. Do you want to earn six figures? Lima gives some sound advice; pick up the telephone. One of the recurring themes in ALL blogs I’ve read on high-dollar freelancing is the connection of two words that makes even the most hard-core fulltime freelancer cringe: cold calling.

Lima is absolutely correct. My own personal foray to the outer edges of five-figure work has included cold calling, but not nearly as much as Lima wants YOU to do. The reason I don’t do much cold calling in my line of work has nothing to do with me being a total badass freelance genius–it is purely circumstantial. But the fact of the matter is, if I want to break the glass ceiling and actually MAKE six figures next year (as opposed to the high fives I earn now) I WILL have to make more cold calls. Yes, it’s been on my mind a lot lately for obvious reasons. When you’re that close to hitting the holy grail figure for the first time, you really want to GO FOR IT, know what I mean?

Cold calling is absolutely vital, and not just for the kinds of freelance writing Lima does. There is huge money in corporate writing, but there is just as much in other sectors…but you will have to let your fingers do the walking, as the old telephone book ad used to say. A freelancer like me, with a strong background in interviewing, being live on camera and behind the mic, and chasing stories has no trouble picking up the phone. But if you don’t have that killer instinct for telephone calls, you need to learn it. Wanna know how? Here are a few hints to developing those ninja phone skills:

1. Remember that the other person is more intimidated by you, the writer. In theory at least, you have the power to make them look great OR horrible in print. THEY should be scared of YOU.

2. Pretend you’re talking to a long-lost relative. You don’t know them, but they are practically family. The truth of the matter is, if you connect with someone on a cold call, they will give you money. That makes them your new best friend.

3. The worst thing that can happen is that the person on the other end of the phone says “no”. If that happens, remember that you didn’t have “yes” when you called, so you lose nothing. You can now cross that name off your list and move on. Everybody wins.

Want to make more money as a freelancer? Get very familiar with the ins and outs of cold calling. And know that cold calling isn’t always about getting a new client or making a sale of your work. It’s also about interviewing, setting up meet-and-greets, doing research and much more. The telephone is your friend.